This invention relates to a coating material for golf balls and to a method of applying same; and more particularly relates to a novel and improved method and composition for increasing the distance of travel of propelled golf balls, in carry and roll.
Perhaps no more time and attention is devoted to any facet of sport than to improving golf club equipment to enable a golfer to hit the ball farther and straighter. Millions of dollars are spent each year to improve or modify the swing characteristics of a golf club whether by way of changing its composition, size, shaft length or stiffness. Similarly, golf balls are constantly being modified in terms of composition, number of dimples, impact resistance, etc. to somehow increase the distance or carry of the ball as well as minimize any tendency of the ball to hook or slice.
Previously, efforts have been made to alter the coefficient of friction of the golf club face so as to control its effect on the flight of the ball whether in terms of imparting more or less side spin or back spin. See U.S. Pat. No. 5,885,171. To the best of my knowledge however, no one has devised a simple effective method or means for lubricating the surface of a golf ball so as to improve its flight characteristics by increasing its distance or carry in response to a given impact or striking force, by reduction of the dynamic friction between the ball and the air. In this relation, it is desirable to enhance the ability of the ball to roll for greater distances along the ground and to minimize any tendency to hook or slice; and still further to make the ball far less susceptible to foreign elements, such as, the wind. Further, it is desirable to provide a composition and method of coating a golf ball which can be applied to the ball without applying to and affecting the golfer""s hand in retaining a secure grip on the golf club when striking the ball or, in other words, will not be significantly transferred or removed from the surface of the ball when the ball is later handled in teeing the ball or in handling the ball on the green.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide for a novel and improved method and composition for treating golf balls to improve their flight and roll characteristics.
It is another object of the present invention to provide for a novel and improved method and composition for coating the external surface of a standard golf ball to reduce the dynamic friction between the surface of the ball and the air and improve its flight characteristics; and specifically wherein the distance or carry of the ball when struck is increased and where the ball impacts the ground dynamically, the reduced coefficient of friction of the surface of the ball results in increased distance or roll.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide for a novel and improved lubricant for coating standard golf balls during the course of play and wherein the lubricant can be applied to the ball in such a way as not to be significantly transferred to the golfer""s hands or grips of the golf club.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide for a novel and improved liquid film lubricant composition and method of applying same which is highly effective either alone or in combination with other ingredients in improving the flight characteristics of the golf ball.
In accordance with the present invention, a lubricant coating composition for golf balls is comprised of a slippery, film, transparent, white or other color matched to the golf ball, lubricant which when applied in a liquid state to an external surface of the golf ball prior to striking the golf ball with a golf club will reduce the coefficient of friction of the external surface of the golf ball when propelled through the atmosphere and in rolling along the ground. Preferably, the golf ball lubricant is a silicone or siloxane polymer fluid, paste or gel. A preferred lubricant is one containing polydimethylsiloxane alone; or, in the case of fluid spray application, combined with sufficient highly vaporous solvent(s), preferably heptane, to act as a diluent and facilitate spray application by pump spray or by aerosol spray and are one(s) that will rapidly vaporize after the lubricant coating mixture is applied to the external surface of a golf ball. The golf ball lubricant can also be other silicone or siloxane polymers that are slippery or non-sticky, transparent or white fluids, pastes, gels such as polymethylphenylsiloxane, polyethylphenylsiloxane, polymethylcyclo-hexylsiloxane, polymethylbutylsiloxane, polymethyl-ethylsiloxane, polybutylphenlsiloxane, polydiphenyl-siloxane, polymethylhexylsiloxane, chlorinated aromatic siloxanes, such as, chloromethylaromatic groups, chloropropylmethylsiloxane-dimethylsiloxane, carbonyl terminated siloxanes, amino silicone emulsions and epoxy functional siloxanes.
The above-described polymers may also be combined with polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).
The lubricant can also be polytetra-fluoroethylene (PTFE), or an emulsion, or with a carrier, or in combination with other compounds and solvents, that becomes a film lubricant.
Further, in accordance with the present invention, a method for enhancing the flight characteristics of a golf ball comprises the steps of applying a coating of a slippery, transparent or white, non-sticky lubricant to an external surface of the golf ball prior to striking the golf ball with a golf club, and applying the coating uniformly to the external surface of the golf ball and to a sufficient degree as to reduce the coefficient of friction of the external surface of the golf ball when propelled through the atmosphere, and when in dynamic contact with the ground (grass). Preferably, the coating is applied by combining the lubricant with a highly evaporative solvent, preferably heptane, or other transparent highly evaporative carrier which will enable the lubricant to be sprayed from a spray dispenser directly onto the surface of the ball. In this way, the golf ball may be sprayed periodically throughout each round of golf to optimize its flight characteristics and specifically to carry for greater distances in the air as well as to produce increased roll along the ground.